WATSIDE WEEDS. 81 



down to little more ttan scales, and- the peduncles 

 might be shortened ; in which case we should have 

 such a form of flower arrangement as we see at 

 Fig, 54, forming what is called a raceme. The 

 raceme is one of those most common forms of in- 

 florescence, and may he erect (as in Fig. 54), or 

 drooping, as in the currant (Fig. 55), Now sup- 

 pose, instead of these little pedicels of the raceme 

 blossoms being all the same length, we have the 

 upper or central ones short, and the lower or outer 

 ones prolonged so as to bring the blossoms nearly 

 to the same level, we have a corymb, as in the 

 bramble (see Fig. 29, p. 35) ; but if we take a 

 corymb, and, as it were, draw it out from the 

 centre, we again get the raceme — a change of form 

 of inflorescence which actually occurs in the floral 

 development of such plants as the wallflower and 

 other crucifers, only that in these cases the little 

 scales, or bracts, necessary to the true raceme, are 

 wanting. Once more let us have all our pedicels 

 springing from one point, and we have the true 

 umbel (Fig. 30, p. 37), which may be simple, or, as 

 in the figure, compound, the secondary umbels of 

 the compound form being named wmbellules, or 

 little umbels. As already alluded to, it is only 

 requisite to concentrate the flowers of the umbel to 

 get the head of the composite. When a raceme, still 

 retaining the raceme character, becomes branched, 

 we get the panicle, which is the common flowering 



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